Improvement in machines for making porcelain knobs



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THOMAS J. SLOAN. I Improvement in Machines for making Porcelain Knobs, &c. No. 122,072, Patented oec.19,1o71.

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Jag-7 2 Sheets--Sheet 2. THOMAS J. SLOAN. l Improvement in-Maqhnes for making Porcelain Knobs, &c. 122,072, Patented Dec. 19,1871.

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,E UNITED STATES PATENT CEEIOE.

THOMAS J. sLoAN, OE BEONXVILLE, AssrGNOE To JAMES L. JENSEN, OE GREEN l POINT, NEw YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IAN MAcHlNEs -FoR MAKING PORCELAIN llcnoeajac.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 122,072, dated December 19, 1871.(A

with reference to the accompanyingdrawing,

To all 'whom/t may concern:

Aand in which- Be it known that I, THOMAS J. SLOAN, of Bronxville, in the county of Westchester and State of New York', have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Making Porcelain Knobs and other articles 5 andl do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description ofthe same, reference being had to the accompanying drawing which forms part of` this specification. l

The machine which is the subject of this application is mainly designed for the manufacture of porcelainV knobs having a flange or base at their inner ends, commonly known as sash-knobs; and the. invention will here be described accordin gly; but it is also applicable to the manufacture of other knobs and articles. The invention comprises a divided mold, fitted with discharging or freeing devices arranged to automatically prevent the pressed clay from sticking to the molds on the Opening of the latter. The invention also includes a false bottom in the mold, arranged to feed up at the close of the descent of the compressing-plunger, tq produce an under -r bottom and final compression. 'The invention likewise consists in devices whereby the same pin that` forms the core in the kn'ob to provide a holefor its attachment to ,the article or surface to which it is to be applied also forms a carrier toremove the pressed knob fromthe molds. Said pin is preferably made to turn when in the soft though compressed clay, to prevent the sticking of the latter\to it. The invention, furthermore, comprises numerous combinations of devices and peculiarities in the action of certain parts, including a combination of the dies or divided mold, plunger, and false bottom hereinbefore referred to; a revolving cutter, in combination with a stationary knob-holder, for shapingand dressing the knobs, and whereby theknobs, when soft, are not liable to fly in pieces or be injured by centrifugal action 5 likewise, a novel construction of the turning device, whereby the turning and shaping of the knob by the cutter is finished at or, during the lift of the knob; also, a certain combination with the mold of a revolving brush for cleaning the mold after the discharge of the compressed article therefrom.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I proceed tol describe it,

`shaft A.

Figure 1 represents a. front elevation, inA part,

of a machine embodying my-improvements, andv adapted to the making of porcelain knobs of the description hereinbefore referred to. Fig. 2` is a horizontal section through the line :c in Fig. l; Fig. 3, a central vertical section in a plane at right angles to Fig. 1, and Fig. 4, a similar section through the line y y. Fig. 5 is a vertical seetion of the dies or divided mold, detached, and thrown open; and Fig. 6, a view of a certain cam, detached, connected with the transfer of the knobs to and from the devices for turning them. Fig. 7 is a view of a finished knob as madeby the machine.

- Similar letters of referenceindicate corresponding parts throughout the several figures.

A/lteferring to the accompanying drawing, A is the main or driving-shaft of the machine, arranged` to' revolve in bearings connected with side uprights B B of a frame which carries the working mechanism. Said shaft A is formed with a crank, C, between its bearings in the up rights, which crank in revolving gives the necessary up-and-down motion by suitable connections and guides, to the p unger D, that in its down stroke compresses the clay in the dies or divided mold E E. These dies, as formed by a vertical division of the mold, are arranged to slide, for the purpose of opening and closing the mold, on al divided table, F F, below the plunger, the movement of the dies being in a parallel direction, or thereabout, with the main The interior configuration of said dies and the form of the bottom of the plunger are made to correspond with the shape ofthe iinished knob before it is turned. The clay is fed into the mold either by hand or automatically by suitable appliances which it is not necessary here to describe, and the lower portion of the mold has arranged to work in it what may be termed a false bottom, Gr,I which may be formed by a flange on the pin H, that constitutes the core by which the hole is made in the knob that provides for its attachment to the article or surface to which it is intended to be applied. This false bottom `Gr has a slight upward stroke at the close of the plung- I with the action of the plunger and'dies, insures a more -uniformly compressed and solid knob. Said false bottom, plunger, and dies all retire from the compressed clay simultaneously, so that an opportunity is aorded for equal and simultaneous expansion of the compressed clay in every direction, which prevents ilaws in the knob. The pressed knob is discharged or rather detached from and prevented fromjsticking to the dies as they open by'dischargers or detachingstrips I I, itted within the dies, and corresponding in configuration at their fronts with that portion ofthe interior ofthe diesin arranged to slide independently, and preferably in the same planes of motion as the dies. These dischargers are forced inward when the dies close till rrested by stops Z1 b, in which position they presaipnt no interruption to the general conguration lof the dies; but on the opening of the dies they are automatically forced outward by springs c c till again arrested by thestops in a reverse direction, and in thus being moved outward press gently in opposite directions on the sides of the compressed knob to detach'itfrom either die.

The pin H is also vibrated or made to turn, to prevent any sticking of the clay to it. After the knob orknob-blank has been thus pressed and liberated, it is carried by the pin H away to the turning devices, by which it is finished into shape, or rather is carried out -from between the open diesE E to a position suitable for removal to the turning devices, and where the pin Hremains stationary while a brush, J, enters between the dies, and, on'the dies closing, isfmade to revolve,

for the purpose of cleaning the dies of any adherin g clay, ready for a succeeding pressing operation. The dies E E then open again and the brush retires, its normal position in the mold, when the dies close for another compressing action on. a fresl feed of clay. From this description it will be observed that the dies E E temporarily close for the operation of the brush J on them during the travel of the plunger D over and above theirregular closing action for the operation of the plunger within them.

The mechanical appliances by which the several devices hereinbefore described are operated in timely relation with each other may be varied,

as will be readily understood by machinists generally, but the followingmeans answer everypurpose: The plunger D receives a continuous upand-down motion, as hereinbefore described, by the. action of the revolving crank C,'and does not enterdthe dies E E till they are closed, norretire till they commence to open. The dies E E are closed or slid toward each other over the table F F during or shortly before the plungers descent, and are kept closed while the plunger is compressing the clay in them by leaves d of cams K K, secured to the revolving main shaft A, and arranged to act upon the upper ends of vertically-sliding wedges L L, which may be piv- Oted above to arms e e, fitted to rock loosely upon a shaft, M, in front.' 'These sliding wedges .in being depressed close and keepfclosed the dies till the leaves d of the cams K pass the upper which they are and the pin H is made to resumeends of the wedges, when the springs N N throw the latter upward and springs o o throw the dies E E-back or open. The temporary closing of the dies E E for the action of the bruslJ within them, before the'plunger D again comes down, is effected by secondaryl oradditional leaves f f ofthe. cams KK acting on the upper ends vof'the wedges L L. The vautomatic action of the dischargers or detachin g slides'I I as the dies open and close, has already been described. The core pin H and false bottom G ofthe mold are carried by the connecting-bar'or piece P of a parallel motion, of which QQ are the arms or legs, that vibrate on shafts or centers g g. Said pin, with the attached false bottom, are slightly lifted as the`- plunger D is about completing its descent, to give a final bottom compression on the clay in the mold by a roller, h, acting onthe under side of the pin, as a lever, i, to which' the roller is attached, is vibrated by a cam, R, on theshaft A acting upon a rod, K, that is pivoted above to a loose arm on the shaft M, and connected belowv to a cranked arm of a rock-shaft, S.

A spring, T, serves to reverse the action of the rock-shaft S and to throw the lever@- back to its normal position after the cam R has ceased to depress and hold depressed the rod k,- and vthe lever i', as it is thus vibrated when under the core-pin H by the conibined'action of the cam B and spring T, is made to turn or vibrate said pin, at the completion of the upward-pressing stroke of the false bottom Gr, by a projection from the levert' striking opposite sides, alternately, of a forked lever, l, which action prevents the sticking of the clay to the core-pin. The pin H, af

ter being lifted, as described, has its drop, and that of the false bottom G, effected or insured bya-spring, m, wound around said pin and caused to press upon the upper side of the forked lever l, which is attached tothe core-pin. The pin H, in addition to itsI primary function of operating as a core to put a hole through lthe knob in direction of its axis, is also made to serve as a carrier for taking the pressed knob or knob-blank away from between the dies, by, on the opening of the latter and the retiring of the plunger and false bottoni, a spring, U, arranged t`o pull on `a rod, n,

which is pivoted above to a loo's'e arm v(inthe shaft M and connected below, by a fast arm or crank,

to one of the shafts y of the parallel motion which carries the core-pin, said spring U throwing the parallel motion forward, as. it were, and the p in H to one side of the dies and holding them 1n such altered positions till a cam, V, on the shaft A comes round again and, pressing down the rod a, returns the parallel motion and thepiii H back to their normal positions and holds them there till the dies EE open again after a succeeding` compressing action of the plunger. The bar P of the parallel motion not only carries the corepin H, but also the brush J, which cleans the dies E lt as they are temporarily closed during each compressing action of the plunger; and as the core-pin H is moved out from between the dies the brush J, which is situated in rear of said Pill, S blOl'lght, by the bar P, into position between the d ies that then close. The brush J is rotated, during this temporary closing of the dies E E, by a cam, W, on the shaft A, acting to depress a rod, o, which is pivoted above to a loose arm on the shaft M, and connected below to a loose bell-cranked lever, p, on the same shaft g that the rod n is att-ached to. This bell-cranked lever, as it is thus operated by the cam WT, draws upon a link-connection, q, to move in the one direction a vibrating toothed segment, r, pivoted, as at s, to a leg, t, of the bar P, and settingin motion a pinion, u, which is fast on the spindle. of the brush. In due course the dies open and the brush retires, along with the back movement of the bar P, to bring the core-pin again between the dies, and the segment is worked back, to put1 its forward end in gear with the pinion again, by a spring, v, which pulls on a crank attached to the pivot of the segment. rlhis being done, the cam W ceases to hold down or back the bellcranked lever p, which is then returned to its normal position by the action of a spring, X, and the upper arm of said lever adjusted along the link q to allow of the latter, when moving forward again in common with the bar P, Vcoming into position for the bell-cranked lever to pull on it and rotate the brush in the dies upon the next temporary closing .of them after a succeeding compressing operation of the plunger. v 'Ihe turning devices are constructed and arranged for operation as follows: The pressed knob, as it is brought out from between the dies bythe travelof the pin H, along with the bar P, is caused to enter at its reduced portion within the one hand A1 of a pair of hands, A1 A2, attached by arms a1 a2 to a vertical spindle, B','that has certain intermittent vibrations and up-anddown or longitudinal movements communicated to it. The knob or knob-blank having thusA been entered within the hand A1, the latter rises by an upward movement of the spindle B' and lifts the knob from oli' the core-pin H. 'Ihespindle B' is then vibrated tocause the hand A1 to bring the knob over a center, b', on the upper end of a vertical shaft, C', which constitutes a knob-holder, andis hung so as to be capable of an up-and-down motion through upper and lower bea-rin gs c' c' in a fixed frame, D'. The hand A1 then drops by a down movement of the spindle B' and deposits the knob on the holder C', the center b' entering the hole in the knob. After this the hand A1 swings back to its normal position and the hand A2 simultaneously moves forward to a position encircling the' holder C' for, in due course, subsequent removal of the iinished knob. The knob being deposited on the holder C', the latter moves up to bring the .top of the knob against a top center, d', of an upper holder, E', which is capable of vertical play through a hub, e', on the frame D', and up or down a guide, w', said center and holder being caused to press downward 'by a spring,'f', so that such holder bears with an elastic pressure on the knob as the latter -is.forced by the holder C' up against it. Encircling the upper holder E' is a hollow spindle or shaft, which is rotated by a pulley g', from above, and which has connected with i s lower end a side cutter, F', of the requisite shape of the top of the knob,

and that, as it is rotated, dresses oii or finishes the knob as the latter is fed upward by the holder C', and whereby the turning is finished when the knob has moved up. By thus employing what may be termed a stationary knob-holder, inasmuch as, although lifting, it holds the knob from revolving, and a revolving cutter, the knobs, when soft, are not exposed to flying in pieces or being injured by centrifugal action. After the knob has been turned, as described, the holder C' drops and the hand A2, rising, lifts the iinished knob from the center b' of the holder C' and swin gs with it over a fixed pin, h', and, lowering, deposits it thereon for future removal. Simultaneously with these actions of the hand A2 the hand A1 lifts another unfinished knob from o' the core-pin H, transfers it over the center b' of the holder C', and deposits fit thereon to be Vlifted and turned, as in the case of the previous knob.

The intermittently-swinging movements of the hands A1 A2 may be eected by a cam, G', on the shaft A, operating on an arm, fi', attached to the shaft M, so as to vibrate the latter in one direction and cause the leg k' to strike and move an arm, l', on the spindle B' of the hands against the action of a spring, H', which draws or swings the hands back again, when the cam G' ceases to act upon the arm t', a spring, I', simultaneously returning the leg lo' to its original position and keeping the arm t" in position to be acted upon again by said cam. rlhe rising-and-falling movements of the spindle B' and hands A1 A2 are elfected by the alternate actions of a cam, J', on the shaft A, and a spring, K', wound around the spindle B', the cam J' working against a loose double-armed lever, m', on the shaft M, and, by a rod, a', connecting said lever with anA arm, o', fast to thefoot of the spindle B', effecting the lift or lifts of said spindle and its hands, while the spring K' accomplishes the lowering of the same at the proper intervals. .The knob-holder C' is lifted and lowered at the necessary periods by the alternate action of a cam, L', on the shaft AA, and a spring, M', wound around the holder,

the cam Il' operating on a loose double-armed lever, q', and by a rod, pr', connecting said lever with an arm, S', fast to the holder, serving to lift `said holder C', as required, while the spring M' operates alternately to lower' it.

-What is here claimed, and `desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is

1. The opening and losingdies or divided mold E E, provided with automat-ic dischargers I I for detaching the molded knob or article from the sides of the mold on the opening of the latter, substantially as specified.

2. The false bottom G, in combination with the divided mold E E and plunger D, arranged to remain stationary during the compressing action of the plunger till toward its close, and then to move j in a reverse direction to the plunger to complete the compression from opposite ends or sides, essentially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

3. The core-pin H, arranged for operation within the divided Vmold and supported by a laterallymoving piece or bar, P, operating to take said pin out of the mold when open, whereby the corepin is also made to act as a carrier to convey the molded article away from the mold, substantially as specified.

4. The combination of the opening and closing dies E E, the rising and falling plunger D, and the temporaril y-1novin g or compressing false bottom G, substantially as described.

5. The revolvingbrush J, arranged to operate Within the divided mold E E for cleaning the latter, essentially as specified.

6. The revolving cutter F', in combination with the knob-holders C E', arranged to center and -hold the knob from turning, substantially as del scribed.

as described.

THOS. J. SLOAN. Witnesses:

FRED HAYNEs,

R. E. RABEAU. (115) 

